The 2016 edition of ZsONAMACO FOTO, the international Mexican fair dedicated to works of photography, opened to the public yesterday at Centro Banamex in Mexico City and is on view through the 25th. Fair director, Zelika García spoke to Whitewall about this year’s highlights as well as the fair’s spirit, challenges and ambitions.
WHITEWALL: What are the highlights of this year’s edition?
Moschino women’s pre-fall 2017 & men’s fall/winter 2017.
Courtesy of Moschino.
ZELIKA GARCÍA: ZsONAMACO FOTO will feature a wide panorama of vintage, modern and contemporary photography. The selection committee is led by Patricia Conde (Director of Patricia Conde Galería, Mexico City), Ana Elena Mallet (independent curator, Mexico City) and Mauricio Maillé (Director of Visual Arts at Fundación Televisa, Mexico City).
We are hosting a series of lectures with guests such as Megan Steinman, Juan Mulder, Maggie Downing and Gerardo Montiel Klimt, as well as a variety of parallel activities including special events and relevant exhibitions such as World Press Photo 2016 in Franz Mayer Museum and Cali Clair-Obscur from Colombian photographer Fernell Franco (exhibition organized by the Cartier Foundation in Paris and curated by Alexi Fabri) in Centro de la Imagen.
Courtesy of Mauricio Aguilar
WW: What was the fair’s main ambition when it was established in 2015?
ZK: The art ecosystem is constantly growing and evolving, which is reflected in the rise of galleries and fairs specializing in particular disciplines. ZsONAMACO FOTO was launched to promote and disseminate photography in Latin America. One year after its debut, ZsONAMACO FOTO 2016 is strengthening specialization in this kind of collecting.
Zelika García
WW: What are the advantages, and perhaps the inconveniences, of having several editions of ZsONAMACO throughout the year?
ZG: We organize four different fairs: ZsONAMACO Salón del Anticuario simultaneously with ZsONAMACO FOTO in September and ZsONAMACO Contemporary Art in parallel with ZsONAMACO Design in February. By having two important weeks during the year, we provide unique opportunities for galleries to come together and introduce their best artworks to collectors, curators, agents, critics and the like. We enjoy working with different galleries and we endeavor to be sensitive to their needs.
Director of Zsona Maco Foto
Maybe a disadvantage would be that nowadays there are too many fairs in the world, and that’s why we are constantly rethinking ZsONAMACO without losing our essence. Instead of doing multiple art fairs around the world, we focus on promoting our country and together maintain a constant interest in culture.
